Florida Panthers Cancel Ring Ceremony

The Florida Panthers have canceled their Stanley Cup ring ceremony Monday at Amerant Bank Arena as Hurricane Milton makes its way towards Florida.

As of Sunday night, 51 Florida counties –including Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach — were placed under a state of emergency as the storm barrels through the Gulf of Mexico towards the state. Milton is expected to make landfall on the Gulf coast of Florida on Wednesday afternoon, but heavy rain is expected to impact parts of southern Florida beginning on Monday.

“As this event would take resources from first responders and service providers, we have made the tough decision to cancel our Champions Ring Ceremony out of an abundance of caution for the safety of all involved,” Panthers president and CEO Matthew Caldwell said in a press release.

The Panthers are offering full refunds for fans who bought tickets to the event. The team will receive their rings privately.

As of now, opening night is still on for Tuesday at 7 pm against the Boston Bruins. However, the weather is forecasted to deteriorate even further then, with tropical-storm-force winds arriving as early as late Tuesday night. However, the Panthers are monitoring the situation.